Don Brisendine of Terry unhooks one of the last spawning crappie on Barnett Reservoir where post-spawn fish are scattered.

Written by

Brian Albert Broom
bbroom@clarionledger.com

It had been over a month since the peak of the crappie spawn at Barnett Reservoir and finding fish in numbers was a hit-or-miss proposition. Don Brisendine of Terry idled into a field of emerging lily pads south of Gilligan's Island where he had caught crappie earlier. "I don't know if they're still here, but we should know soon enough," said Brisendine.

Brisendine didn't realize exactly how soon we would find out. Within seconds of dropping my jig in the water near a clump of pads, WHAM! - it got hit hard. Unfortunately for me, he didn't get the hook and managed to avoid every fish's nightmare, the ...